Asuke
by gillywulf
Summary: A sand wolf was pacing in the center of the room. Its nose twitched suddenly and it ceased. Because it was on its two back feet, it dropped down to all fours and went to the wall where they had first heard Gaara's voice. VERY long oneshot


Hey, you know I don't own it so…. Yeah….

Asuke is an orphan with a well known secret. When he was born, a wolf demon

was sealed inside his body. If it is removed he would die. He struggles with every day life

because everyone rejects him, thinking of him only as the demon container. They kept

their children away from him causing him to have no friends. This made him isolated. He

pronounced his name like asook. He was a tall handsome boy with pale skin and blue hair.

He was like a mini-me to Gaara. But because he was still very young people began to

compare him to the other two demon holders, Gaara of the sand and Naruto of the leaf.

Gaara's separation caused him to want everyone dead that is not him but he later turned

into someone like Naruto. Naruto's caused him to want acknowledgement and brought

him closer to the village. Asuke was a second Gaara if anything. He lived in the sand

village ruled by none other than Gaara. Gaara sometimes even visited young Asuke. He

grew found of Gaara but always skeptical. This is where our story begins.

Gaara's weekly visit had come. Asuke waited in the corner of his hut to be told to

step out of his small home into the village to be known. He never argued even though he

was known by the demon inside. He put on his blue jacket and sat back down. Gaara

suddenly appeared in front of him in a mist of sand. "Asuke, your time has come to not

only leave the village for the academy but for the tattoo of the demon holders" Gaara said.

He pointed to his forehead above his left eye. "I have taught you to control the power o

the demon inside and you should bear it well" he continued. Asuke looked at Gaara with

a blank stare because he knew it would come. He nodded. "Very well" Asuke got into the

appropriate stance and sand rose and began to swirl above his left eye. He stood still as

the sand became thick. It parted to reveal the tattoo that was identical to Gaara's. "Now

do as I said" Gaara commanded. Asuke tenderly touched the spot. He closed his eyes and

raised two fingers parallel to his nose. Sand swirled around him and he disappeared.

Asuke appeared in front of a building with kids his age going into it. It was the

academy. Two boys recognized him and pointed him out to everyone. A few girls who

had not at first recognized him sighed with affection for him but as soon as they were told

who he was they quickly dropped the affection. They stared down on him angrily but

while they did this he just stared ahead. He walked into the academy without a care in the

world. "And you are?" An old ninja asked. "Asuke of the sand village" he replied. "Ah,

now perform a jutsu without help from anyone" the ninja said. Asuke smiled and

disappeared behind a swirl of sand and reappeared behind the man again. The man was

baffled. He stared as a smile ran across Asuke's face. "Y-y-you may move on to the next

level" he stammered. He was walking down the hall when a boy his age who, obviously,

didn't care who he was caught up with him. He was the same height and dark brown hair.

He had an odd set of clothes on and Asuke just ignored him at first. "Hey, I'm Jinee and

you are Asuke right?" He said. "Yes" Asuke replied. "What's that?" he asked pointing to

a key around Asuke's neck. The key was given to him by Gaara meaning that his door

was always open to Asuke. It meant a lot to Asuke. "None of your business. Why do you

ask so many questions?" Asuke insisted. Jinee shrugged and kept walking. They soon

caught up with a, in Asuke's mind, pretty girl their age with long yellow hair. "That's

Bakra, she is a pain!" Jinee said. He made an angry gesture towards her. Jinee started to

whistle a tune and she turned around. "Hello Bakra!" He said. She stopped to let them

catch up. "This is Asuke the-" Jinee said interrupted. "Holder of the demon, yeah I know,

I'm Bakra" she said. "Well let's get onward shall we?" Jinee said. They walked on

completing all of the tasks with ease.

They were split up into teams to bond and the three of them were together. Jinee

was upset that he was with Bakra but Asuke was happy though not showing it. The three

of them easily graduated the academy receiving their headbands. It was now time to go to

the chunin exams. The three of them packed their things up but very lightly and set off

for the place needed. Asuke had something rather odd holding his things for battle. It was

a big banana full to the removable edge. Jinee had a small bag and Bakra had a small

pouch on her leg holding only knives for ninjas. They walked past a large tree that filled

his head as a memory because Gaara had said it was the first place he met Naruto. Asuke stopped and stared at it. Bakra noticed and stopped as well. "Asuke, are you alright?" She

asked. He stared for a bit longer before noticing she said anything. "Wha- oh yeah, let's

go" he replied still looking at the tree. They continued on their way barely even stopping.

Asuke heard something in the distance. He stopped and held out his arm to hi side to tell

the others to stop. They did. Asuke put two fingers on his right hand over his left eye and

let sand roll down his arm. In his left hand an eye formed. He pointed to over the hill they were on signaling to it to go and check it out. The eye turned back into sand and did so.

He lifted the finger from his eye. "Leaf village candidates" Asuke reported. "Are you

sure?" Bakra asked. Asuke shook his head. They walked forward but stopped on top of

the hill. Asuke kneeled down and put his two fingers to the ground. The ground turned to

sand underneath the leaf team. "Huh?!" One of them cried. Asuke stood up and his

teammates were filled with wonder. "Whoa, what else can you do? With the eye and the

ground, I can't wait to see" Jinee said. They walked to the unsuspecting leaf team. One of

them sparked something inside Asuke, as if from a dream or he'd met them somewhere.

He wore a clan symbol over his right eye that looked like a sick squirrel. His shirt was

black and so was his hair. His left hand was bandaged and bloody underneath. "Huse"

Asuke muttered to himself. The boy noticed him suddenly and stared hard at him. "So

Asuke, you made it to the chunin exams huh?" Huse said. "So have you and I hope you'll

be stronger than last time" Asuke replied. While they stared at each other their teams

stared at them. "Wait, are we missing something here?" Bakra complained. Asuke

retuned his eyes back to her. "He used to live in the sand village before… there" He

replied. "You picked up a girl eh?" Huse questioned. Bakra suddenly got offensive but

Asuke flashed his arm in front of her while staring at Huse. She got the feeling that he

could deal with it. The sand beneath the leaf villagers flew to Asuke and covered his arm

and became a club-arm. Asuke pointed it at Huse and fired. Sand entered his mouth and

he began to choke. Asuke stopped as Huse's teammates surrounded him. "That's just a

taste my friend, along with a warning. One more time and I will resume what happened

eight years ago, understand?" Asuke asked. Huse nodded as sand left his mouth and

reentered the huge banana along with the sand on its master's arm. Asuke, Bakra, and

Jinee walked past them without an even glance. "What just happened back there?" asked

Bakra. "He gave his enemy a taste of what could be worse and he put him out of the way

for us" Jinee wheezed in between explanations. "Wow, that was the fastest you have ever

said something!" Bakra pointed out.

They walked inside to be greeted by their sensei. "Welcome. Bakra, if you had

not come today, none of you would be taking the chunin exams. Bakra looked at him.

"What do you mean?" She asked. He tilted his head. "Did you see either of them earlier

today?" he asked. Bakra shook her head. The sensei straightened his head once more.

"They might have pressured you to come so I kept them where you found them this

morning" He explained. Asuke was determined to get past the doors ahead of him. Bakra

looked at her teammates and nodded. "I'm willing" she said. He stepped away from the

door and gestured to it. "Well then, with all of my wishes good luck and don't forget your

surroundings" he said. They walked into the room and saw many genins from many

places. "Whoa, some competition" Jinee commented. Asuke grunted. Bakra and Jinee

looked at him with surprise. "We can take 'em all on" he said. The written part went well

because they had all listened to their sensei's words and scored perfect, all of them. Now

for the combat. They stood on the raised platform waiting for their turn. "Asuke of the

desert versus…Huse of the forest!" the sensei announced. Asuke disappeared they way

he always did. He was suddenly on the floor to fight. Huse stood before him. Asuke

folded his arms as a stream of sand covered Huse. He struggled at first trying to figure

out how to stop it but then he realized that there wasn't so he just braced himself. He

toppled over in no time. "Asuke wins" the sensei said. Asuke returned to the platform as

healers came and took Huse away. Bakra and Jinee both knew that it was not his full

potential. He had done harder things that barely drained his energy. But one of his attacks

completely drained his energy and although it looked very simple, there is more than

meets the eye. Jinee was next. He jumped from the platform to be meet be one of Huse's

team members. He had a bandana over his mouth and nose and his headband was tilted so

that it covered his left eye. His hair was brown with a blue tinge. He wore exactly what

the traitor Sasuke wore. He had a scar on his right eye. They went hand to hand, unlike

Asuke's battle, for about fifteen minutes. He won by giving the leaf boy a knock in the

neck which knocked him out. Jinee only had a bloody nose to walk away with. If Bakra

won, they would all be promoted to chunin. On one, condition, they beat a sensei and

complete a dangerous mission. Bakra stood at the ready while her opponent stood up. She

had long, green, flowing, hair. Jinee looked with interest as she stood. In his mind she

was the prettiest girl ever. Asuke thought Jinee and his love would be going at to see

which the better find was. Asuke had faith in Bakra because during missions at the

academy she always healed Jinee fast. Of course, Asuke never got hurt. Bakra stood in

her stance waiting to be attacked which the girl did. She hit a side kick which caused her

to get a punch in the mouth. She stumbled back as Bakra came in for the win. She slid at

the girl's legs. The girl toppled over. "Wow, that was easy!" she said. Her face turned to

pain. She looked at her leg that she slid on. It was drenched in blood. Asuke had already

noticed but chose to do nothing except call for somebody. He was afraid it would show

his feelings for her. She fainted into Asuke's arms for he was very fast and he would not

let his teammate suffer more by hitting the ground. The medics came just as he laid her

unconscious body down. They put her on the stretcher and took her away. Bakra had still

won which meant that they had to train. "Let's go train Jinee" Asuke said walking away.

"We have to go with her Asuke! We're her teammates!" Jinee yelled. Jinee was thrown

back on the wall by sand. "There is nothing more we could have done or I WOULD

HAVE!" Asuke said letting the sand reenter the banana on his back. By now the exams

were over for the day meaning the room was empty. Outside Jinee caught up with the

raged Asuke. "You like her don't you, I can see it in you" Jinee said to Asuke. "Yes I do

is that a problem?" he replied. Jinee stopped in his tracks. "You've got to be kidding me"

Jinee said. "If you're so intent on seeing her let's go" Asuke retorted.

They walked into the building where she was being held. A nurse was propping

her pillow because they were about to put her in it. The man's grip on her gave way and

she was caught by supporting sand. The sand lifted her without fault onto the bed. It also

pulled the covers over her shoulders. The sand retreated to Asuke and the two boys sat

down. About an hour later Bakra woke to see only Asuke. She figured Jinee had left to

train because he did the worst of the three of them. "Good morning Bakra" Asuke greeted.

She was rather surprised that he stayed there for her because he usually stayed out of her

way. "Thanks, why are you still here when you should- oh that's right you control sand"

she said. Asuke gave a small laugh. "They bandaged your leg and you should be able to

walk today" he informed. She swung herself off the bed still being tender to her injured

leg. She walked a full three steps before stumbling and being caught by Asuke's quick

hand. He handed her clothes to her, the doctors changed her to a robe, so that she could

get dressed. Knowing that she did not want him to watch he left the room. Outside he

noticed Jinee coming toward him. "So what happened?" he asked. "Minor cut, pretty

deep, she can walk now and she just woke up" Asuke replied. "Fine, fine, but I meant

between you and her Asuke. Any sparks or anything?" Jinee asked. "What? No and I

don't know what you're talking about" he answered. "Sure" Jinee mimicked sarcastically.

Jinee panted while training with one of Asuke's 'sand dummies' which was

anything but a dummy. Asuke leaned against the wall with his arms folded controlling

the dummy. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Bakra come through the door and

watching Jinee train with a smile on her face. The dummy knocked Jinee over with a

punch and waved to her. She waved back with a chuckle. "What was that for?!" Jinee

asked. "You were going to lose anyway" Asuke replied. "Na ah, I was just about to give

that thing a big sucker of a kick, till you jumped in" Jinee got into a fighting stance.

Asuke walked to where Bakra could see him. "I see they've released you" he said looking

up at her. She noticed him for the first time since she got there. "Oh, yeah I feel a lot

better now. Was that yours?" She asked. "Yeah check this out. It's my new diversion tool.

I can shift its shape easily" he said as it turned into its master. It was a perfect replica.

Even Bakra who was there when he shifted it couldn't tell the difference. The dummy

lost its shape and went back to his banana. "Well I see you have all arrived for the second

to last test" a sensei said as he entered the room. "You first, Bakra, just in case Uschi

over there hurts your leg again we want more time to tend to it" he explained. Asuke

disappeared taking Jinee with him this time to stand on the platform. He was willing to

transport Bakra by herself something that he's never done. He drained a lot of energy but

was successful. She was a bit woozy but she easily regained focus. "Let's go!" Bakra

insisted getting into position. Uschi accidentally kicked Bakra's leg causing it to bleed

again. "BAKRA!" both boys shouted. She clenched her teeth and stood. She removed her

knives from her pouch and Uschi did as well. They fought with them for awhile before

Uschi lost them both. Bakra was exhausted but didn't need to walk because Asuke. As

she appeared they both caught her as she fell. They laid her on the bench knowing that

she was just tired. Jinee jumped and picked the weakest sensei that looked as if he didn't

want to fight. Jinee beat him in no time. He climbed up back so that he was with his team

once again. Asuke Held two fingers parallel to his nose and disappeared in a cloud of

sand. He reappeared in font of the strongest of the senseis. What no body knew was that

what was in front of the sensei was one of his dummies. Asuke was waiting for the right

moment. The dummy and the sensei fought for three minutes before they reached

Asuke's hiding place. Asuke jumped out and kicked the sensei in the head. He fell over

unconscious. The dummy stood next to Asuke. It lost its shape again and reentered the

banana. The other sensei's looked with disbelief. He was suddenly back with his team.

"We're ready for the mission" he announced with one arm supporting the tired Bakra.

"How can you, with a teammate like that?" one asked pointing to Bakra. "We have our

tactics" he explained. "Very well, you have to survive in the desert without food for two

weeks" another said. He nodded. Bakra regained her energy in time to pack up some

medical supplies and swiping some food into her pack as well.

They stood at the edge of the desert waiting to be called along with the other nine

teams. They had to travel a whole circle in the desert and come back first in order to

become a chunin. On the first day they made it half way when most teams made it only a

fourth of the way. They had food but not much. "Are you sure you don't want any Asuke?

You'll starve" Bakra asked holding out a piece of food to him. "I' sure, after all, the

demon ensures my survival in all conditions" he explained. "But I might want some

tomorrow" Bakra was rather prepared for this but thought he should eat something. They

went to sleep and Jinee fell asleep in no time but Bakra and Asuke stayed awake for a

while and fell asleep together.

Bakra woke to see Asuke looking out to their path. "Someone traveled all night

and is right on our tail" Asuke said. "Wake Jinee, we're going now" He ordered. Jinee

was up with a start. They had a short breakfast and were off. Asuke hurried them along

whether or not they wanted to be rushed. They had a fourth left to go when Jinee said he

didn't feel so well. "I guess I'll have to use my dummy to carry you although I was

hoping to avoid using them" Asuke said. Instead of sand from his banana the ground

underneath Jinee turned into a wolf as the ground under Bakra. Asuke was riding on a

sand horse. The horse turned to wolf and the wolves turned to horses. "Trade?" Asuke

asked. They rode on suddenly hearing shouts in the distance behind them. "Huse is

coming, come on" Asuke instructed. About an hour later Huse and his team came into

view. Asuke stood on the wolf's rear end and jumped off as the wolf disintegrated. Huse

and his team had run which gave Asuke's team the obvious advantage. The horses

disappeared from view and became sand once more. It would take them another hour

before they reached the finish line. Huse and his team stopped around Asuke. "So you

want to feel the real pain of my team? So be it!" Huse remarked. Asuke smiled. "In case

you haven't noticed, you're in my arena. I beat you twice when we were nowhere near

sand, but now since we're in the desert, welcome" Asuke taunted. Sand burst from under

the girl's feet. Same with the other boy. Huse dodged his and attacked Asuke. He

stumbled two steps. "So you want hand to hand, fine" Asuke agreed. He hit Huse hard in

the stomach. Asuke released the group and ran forgetting that he had skipped out on

breakfast. Bakra wasn't sure what Asuke was doing but she knew it would benefit the

team in some way. She faced forward again to see a sight for sore eyes, the finish line.

They crossed it with relief. "Congratulations on making it first but where's the last of

your team?" a sensei asked. "Coming, I hope" she muttered. A sandstorm suddenly arose

and Bakra felt not the power of Asuke for he had apparently been holding it back. This

was natural. "You must come inside, both of you!" the sensei said. Bakra gave in but

watched the entrance with Jinee for Asuke. They saw a figure approaching. Bakra got

excided and figured it was Asuke. But when he drew nearer, it was Huse. He entered the

tent that everyone was in. "I took care of your little team member" Huse rejoiced. Huse

sat on a spare bed inside the tent. They slept uneasily.

Bakra woke early in the morning. Jinee was up too. They just felt something. The

sand storm had died down but not completely. They looked outside for awhile before

noticing a black spot near the finish line. "Jinee, look at that" Bakra said pointing to the

spot. They waited till the storm was over before leaving because her leg opened up again.

Once the storm settled for good the two carefully stepped outside. As they got closer

excitement grew. "ASUKE!" Bakra yelled. Asuke lay on the finish line. They ran to him.

"He must have arrived during the storm. We'd better get him inside" They dragged him

into the tent to see Huse's shocked face. "You three are to be promoted to chunin" the

head sensei said. They put Asuke on a spare bed and dumped water on his face and

poured some into his mouth. "Take the banana off" someone said. They removed it pretty

easily. Asuke slowly began to stir. He occasionally adjusted himself in the bed. Bakra

just sat next to Jinee watching him sleep or what ever else he might be doing. "You think

he'll be alright?" Bakra asked. "Didn't he say the demon would ensure his survival in all

conditions?" Jinee replied. "I guess" Bakra admitted. They watched for another hour.

"Jinee look" Bakra said pointing to Asuke. Jinee had been falling asleep. "HUH! Oh,

right, he's moving" Jinee said sleepily. Asuke slowly sat up to be greeted by the thankful

arms of Bakra. Asuke was happy to be awake and to be alive. Bakra kept making sure he

was ok. "Are you sure?" she questioned. "Positive" he replied rather annoyed. He swung

himself to the edge of the bed. He buried his head in his hands and got deep into thought.

He wondered whether or not he really liked her and vise versa. He decided not to think

about and to get lunch. He sat back down on the bed only to be accompanied by Bakra on

one side and Jinee on the other. "Listen, we've got something else to do now. Naruto and

Gaara want to go at it again and we have to stop it" Jinee informed. At this Asuke

dropped his fork and looked at Jinee with devastation. He suddenly made them all

disappear with him.

They found themselves in a shabby old hut that Asuke navigated as if he had

never left the place. "Where are we?" Bakra asked. Asuke came around the corner with a

book. "My home" Asuke answered. "Gaara used to visit me every week. Time to use it.

Come on let's go" he continued. They disappeared again only to find that their

surroundings had gotten neater. Asuke led them to a huge room in which he stopped in

the middle of the doorway. What's wrong Asuke?" Jinee asked. "They should be right

here, so be careful" His eyes met Bakra's. Jinee and Bakra decided that it was best to stay.

Asuke did his disappearing act and reappeared in the center of the room. The two turned

the corner to watch. "Asuke? Well you're home early" a voice said. They could only see

Asuke. "No, this is a mission" Asuke replied. There were loud footsteps. "Naruto. Asuke

stay out of this" the voice instructed. Asuke's face hardened. "No Gaara, you were saved

by Naruto, remember?" Asuke recalled holding up the book. "You said so, in the story.

When I was three, I wrote them all down as you said them" Asuke started to recall other

moments. "In the story you said that you met Naruto for the first time by a tree and I was

at the tree too" Asuke said. The door opened behind Asuke. In stepped the famed Naruto

with a mean look. "Whoa, the three demon holders in the same room" Jinee commented.

"I can't picture Asuke when he was three" Bakra whispered. "WHY are you two going to

fight?!" Asuke bellowed. "We had a dispute over which demon was more powerful"

Gaara explained. "And because my demon gains a tail every time it powers up it must be

more powerful" Naruto shouted adding an odd look. This got Asuke angry even though

he wasn't in the fight. Sand shot from the banana on his back forming two huge wolves

and another covering Asuke making the Naruto get scared. Gaara had not yet seen this

but watched with delight believing he could beat the three of them. Naruto used his nine

tailed demon stage to defeat one of them but the sand entered another one of them and

knocked him out. The two wolves turned to Gaara. Gaara started clapping and then

copied Asuke's ability only he made tigers. The animals fought until there was just two

left, one tiger and one wolf. By now Bakra and Jinee had entered view and could see the

tiger and wolf fighting. The both of the beasts were huge. The wolf spoke. "Gaara, I must

stop you from fighting. You can stop it yourself" it pleaded. "I don't care what a little

genin thinks-" the tiger replied. It suddenly burst. The wolf turned around. Naruto stood

there as a tenth tail sprouted on its form. It was impossible. Naruto's demon had only

_nine_ tails, hence the name nine-tailed fox. He then collapsed with one last sentence before

turning unconscious. "I believe that neither Gaara nor I are the strongest… you are" he

said. The wolf suddenly had two back human feet. The sand gradually retreated to the

banana and Asuke stood there looking confused. His teammates ran to his side. "I don't

understand what he said" Asuke mentioned. Bakra and Jinee looked at him. "You're the

most powerful ninja ever and you're not even a tokubetsu jounin" Bakra remembered.

"Gaara was wrong on two things. First he called me a genin when we're chunins, and

second he told me as child, that once you reach your limit, you can't get any better than

your limit, but Naruto, he now has ten tails. More than the demon inside" he realized.

They all looked at the sleeping Naruto. "This means we can all get better no matter what"

Jinee squealed. "I need it" he joked. Bakra wanted to go back to Asuke's house just to

look around. "Can we go back… to that place, where you got that book?" she asked. So

they went back. He told them his whole life until he met them. He showed them what he

did every morning and why he was like how he was. "Let's get back to the academy"

Jinee suggested. "Why?" Bakra asked. "That's where you find out how to get promoted

each time" Asuke responded.

Back at the academy they walked to the other side of the building without getting

seen. In the final room they met their sensei who told them what was next. "You now

need to interfere with a major fight and, possibly, stop it" he summarized. The trio looked

at each other. "I think we already did that. Gaara and Naruto were about to fight and if

Asuke had never lived there them one of them would be dead" explained Jinee. They told

him every detail truthfully. Asuke even created a wolf for him which stayed until the end.

It was sunset when they finished. The sensei nodded slowly. "Well then, you're next

target is jounin. You need to live apart from each other for six months. Understand?" he

asked the closely tied group. They were thinking of ways to communicate without talking

or seeing each other. "Can we write letters?" Bakra asked. Sensei thought. "I don't see

why not" compromised.

The months went by slowly. They each had been practicing and trying new things.

Bakra had only changed her style of clothes. She now wore pants instead of a long dress.

A tight t-shirt was in place as well. On her feet was nothing new. Jinee started wearing a

clan vest with many pockets. His pants were the same as well as his shoes. Asuke had

started dressing more seriously. He wore a long sleeve shirt whose collar crawled up his

neck. His pants matched the shirt. The banana had a new strap and he was looking better

than ever. Finally the challenge came to an end.

Asuke waited, lying on a small sand dune by the academy. He couldn't wait to see

his team again. He sat up and decided to start for the room. "Asuke!" he heard as he felt

arms close around him. He recognized the voice as Bakra's. "I'm so happy to see you!

Have you seen Jinee?" she asked as she let go. His heart sank. "No I haven't, why?" he

asked. "Oh you know I just want to see the team back together again" she answered. He

felt better but was still happy to see her especially. "Hey! Guys?" they heard behind them.

Jinee was running toward them. The ground turned to sand under his feet. "What the?!"

Jinee yelled. He slipped and fell with such gusto that the sharpest of eyes couldn't have

seen it. Bakra and Asuke started laughing hysterically. The sand went for Jinee's spilled

blood but Asuke gave it a sharp look so that it would enter the banana on his back.

"Come on Asuke that wasn't funny!" Jinee demanded. "Sorry. So today's the day we

become tokubetsu jounins" he said. The laughing ceased. They stared at the building

ahead of them and started toward it. Everyone stared as they walked past, Asuke in the

lead. They reached the room only to find it empty. "Sensei?" Jinee called. Asuke created

a small wolf, which as soon as it reached the center, eyes glowed red. Asuke covered

them with a sand box, protecting them. A thud was heard above them. A hand poked

through the top, As soon as it exited, a stream of sand followed it out. Asuke made a

doorway for himself as he defended them. His head appeared in a small whole in the

ceiling with a tiny smile. "Just sensei" he notified. Jinee had jumped up with fright into

Bakra's arms and she dropped him flat on the ground. "You haven't changed much, have

you?" she asked looking down on him pitifully. "Maybe I have and you don't know it

yet" he replied. The box disappeared and the team stood together. "Ahhhhhh, Team

Uzamaki, you've all matured so much in just six months. Not to mention you're skills,

especially detecting a hidden one" he said. They looked at him with suspicion. "Two

things. First, congratulations for making it to jounin-" They stared at him surprisingly.

"HOW DID WE MAKE IT TO JOUNIN???????!!!!!!!!!!!" they shot. "- by always being

one step ahead of the game. You could always tell a lie from the truth" he continued.

They remembered a small challenge they had about a year ago. They had completed it

with ease. He had been tough on them with team work though. "So you're saying that we

did that late?" Jinee asked. "Well technically, yes" he answered. "To keep you with

others your age" Jinee was starting to get mad but soft sand covered his eyes causing him

to fall asleep. They knew that later they would be sennin and later a kage. They all knew

as well that Asuke would at least become a sennin possibly a kazekage. Now they would

be on their own, separated into groups of young genins. And so they were. They have all

grown much since the passageway two years ago, and are still growing because they're

young for jounins.

Asuke was not separated to a group. The other two were. Bakra had two girls and

one boy in her's. Jinee had three boys. They nearly always got on his nerves; he just had

to deal with it. Asuke was being tested to see if he was worthy of being promoted. Turns

out, he was. He came out of a hall, exhausted. "Hey there mister… Asuke" a teenage

voice called. He looked up. There was a genin girl accompanied by another girl and an

annoyed boy. Sand flowed in front of her to create the words; Hey, and you are? She

looked at him with excitement and fear. He gave a hint of a smile. "So how'd it go?" he

heard a familiar voice but was by now too tired to reply. Bakra, the group leader, stepped

from the corner and still leaned on the wall with her arms crossed. "I did it, I'm a sennin"

he replied. She smiled at him. "This your team?" he asked. "Yeah. This is Azrah" she

said pointing to the girl who had spoken. "These two are Therin and Kiyo" she continued

first gesturing to the boy then the girl. "So you did it. What's next? Kage?" she asked. He

nodded. The genins stared at him delightfully. "Jinee" he muttered. Sure enough Jinee

rounded the corner following three upset and angered boys. By now Asuke had gained

some strength. When he noticed his teammates he got excited. "Guys!" he shrieked.

Bakra and Asuke looked at each other. He introduced his team and asked Asuke why he

didn't have a team because he forgot. "Well, I was the highest ranking in all of the

villages, remember?" he laughed. "Oh, right" Jinee remembered. Asuke now had back all

his strength. The demon ensured his survival on all occasions. "Hey guys, can I talk to

you for a minute?" he asked. They looked at him and realized that it was for a sake. They

followed him into a small room. "Listen… if I want to become kazekage I need my team"

he explained. Bakra gave him a suspecting look. He turned his face to her. "One last

mission for the books?" added. They both nodded at him with emphasis. Their teams

were temporarily taken over by other jounins with nothing to do. The next day they were

off.

They walked down a forest trail. Bakra didn't know what to think. "Why are we

in the leaf?" Jinee asked. "We all have to defeat the tsuchikage in order for promotion"

he notified. Jinee nearly jumped with delight. "So we'll get promoted too?!" he rejoiced.

A nod came from Asuke. "That also means two things. One, you'll be a sennin, what I

am now. Two, No more teams of genins. The Jounins that have them now will stay with

them…that is…if you win" he teased. They soon came to a large village where people

stared at them with hatred. "Well this is the most welcome we've ever got" Jinee

muttered to his group. They soon came to a large tent in the middle of the village. They

stopped in front of it. An old man stepped out. He looked at them up and down. "I have

been informed that there was to be a sennin and two jounins coming to get promoted" he

deciphered. The three nodded. "And you are the sennin?" he asked pointing to Asuke.

"Yes I am" he answered. Young children stared at him admiringly. "Sand?" the old man

inquired. They nodded. He pointed past them to a group of sennins. "Defeat them and

then me" he instructed. They were immediately attacked by the group. There was one for

each of them. Jinee got the weakest one with luck. He defeated him easily which meant

he had improved greatly. Bakra won with difficulty. She was exhausted. There was no

doubt that Asuke would win, which he did. He turned to the old man. Sand burst from

Asuke's palm which knocked the tsuchikage to his back. He stood, wiping his mouth.

"You have learned well, now put it to the test" he shot. Asuke decided to go hand to hand

for the first time ever. It was too fast. Nobody saw what happened. Asuke stood with

pride as the tsuchikage fell with a thump. Jinee and Bakra stared at Asuke with

astonishment. "Y-y-you went combat" Jinee noticed. Asuke was panting rather lightly.

The tsuchikage stood very slowly. "You'll have to do better than that" he laughed. Asuke

and the old man went combat and Asuke had sand help him out. The old man was down

for good this time. He was not killed but had blood coming from his nose and mouth.

Asuke for the first time ever had a small trickle of blood from his lip. Bakra removed a

tissue from her pouch which she handed to him to stop the bleeding. He pressed it against

his lip and put it in a pouch of his own. Sand that has the tsuchikage's blood entered the

fruit on Asuke's back. They walked back into the forest preparing to have things thrown

at them on their way out. As expected twigs and other possessions were thrown at them

with anger. A nut hit Jinee's eye. "Hey, what was that for?!" he commanded. In return he

received angry shouts. He sped up to escape from them. Once they were out of range they

started talking to each other. "So we're officially promoted?" Bakra asked. A nod came

from Asuke ahead of her. She then remembered what he was. "I guess you're a kazekage

now" she muttered. They reached the edge of the forest where they slept for the night.

They awoke with a light shake. Once awake they realized sand hands had woken them. "I

see my alarm has worked" Asuke assumed. They stood swiftly. "Well… I guess this is

good-bye" Jinee sung. To the threesome, it sounded odd, they have said it before, but

they always saw each other again on missions but there were no more missions to do.

They stared out into the distant desert. A small sand storm was arising. Bakra felt tears in

her eyes. She hugged her teammates with force to show she would really miss them.

When she released Asuke he gave her a smile, closed his eyes, raised two fingers parallel

to his nose, and disappeared. Jinee and Bakra walked their separate ways.

Halfway to her destination, Bakra suddenly felt something hard in her leg pack.

She paused and looked at it. Bakra lifted its lid and gasped. "I didn't put this in here" she

decided. She pulled out a picture frame holding a group picture of when they were first

put in a group. She then realized that over her face sand was gathering. She brushed it

away but in a moment it was back. It grew until it covered nearly the whole picture.

There, before her eyes, it turned to words. 'I'll miss you Bakra, your good friend, Asuke.'

She nearly cried.

Jinee sat down on a bed that sat in his room. He thought about Asuke and Bakra.

He slowly laid back. He felt something sharp so he raised himself again. There was the

same gift that Bakra had, a picture. The same words floated across instead with his name.

He stared at it and didn't believe that Asuke would do it. There was a knock on his door.

It was his mother. "You got a letter" she told. Jinee stood from his bed and took the letter.

It was from Bakra. 'Jinee, I have a picture from Asuke, did you get one?' it said. He

quickly scribbled a few words down on a piece of paper. He wanted to meet with her

about it.

Asuke walked to the village entrance of where he had always been discriminated.

It was still quiet like it had always been. He continued on. A ball shot from a house and

landed in front of him. "AND PLAY WITH IT OUT THERE!!!" he heard a shout from

the house from which it came. A crying boy followed the ball. He halted when he saw his

ball being held by only sand in mid-air. He brightened up immediately. He started

playing with the sand. A few minutes passed before he got bored with it and played with

the ball again. Asuke treaded on. He came to a large hut that made the small hut next to it

seem like a toy. A familiar figure strolled into it. Sand suddenly blocked the figure's path.

He turned around. "Asuke. So how far in rankings did you get?" he asked. "Kazekage,

Huse, that's how far" Huse shifted his face to fear. He knew you couldn't get higher in

ranking. "Any one living there?" Asuke asked pointing to the hut in front of Huse. Huse

shook his head. Huse stepped aside as Asuke walked past him into the hut. It was

spacious but didn't fit his need. He remembered something he said as a child. 'I'm gonna

rule this place one day, Gaara, I know I will.' He had said. Gaara looked at him sternly.

'Only the elite will ever rule any where, including you.' Gaara had replied. Asuke pushed

sand at Gaara with anger adding as he did it 'I AM elite, I WILL rule, you'll see! I'll

even own the biggest house, I promise!' Asuke stared into the empty house he was in. He

remembered his promise and considered its meaning. He turned toward Huse. "You

might want to sell it soon, I can smell rot" he suggested passing him by. Huse nodded

with fright. He left the huge hut and started toward the tiny one next to it. A swirl of sand

stopped him in his tracks. It was Gaara who was revealed by the swirl. He seemed

disowned. He looked Asuke up and down like the tsuchikage did only without the pride.

"So you did it I see, I am no longer the kazekage, you are" he reckoned. "Apparently the

sixth kazekage" Gaara sighed. Asuke thought about this. The gourd on Gaara's back

seemed heavy to him. It made him droop. "I'll trade homes with you, after all, your house

is like my house and my house is like your house" Asuke persuaded. Gaara and Asuke

shook hands and switched homes. As Asuke took the last thing from his old hut Gaara

walked in. "Remember what you said about me not being elite, when I told you I'd own

the biggest hut, that I would rule, my promise to you?" he asked. "In fact I do. I never

thought you'd actually do it though" his voice trailed off. Gaara looked up but there was

no Asuke to apologize to.

Bakra and Jinee entered a quiet sand village. A little boy who was playing with a

ball outside stopped and stared at them. "Are you sure this is it?" Jinee asked Bakra. "I'm

sure, I got some extra information" she answered. They continued on their way until they

came to two huts next to each other at the end of the way. Gaara, they saw, walked into

the small one. "Hey, you there!" Bakra yelled. He turned around. "Hey, you two were in

Asuke's team, why are you here?" he asked once they became close. They looked at the

shabby, tiny hut in front of them. "Isn't that Asuke's hut?" Gaara shook his head. "We

switched because he is kazekage not me" he replied. "So where is he now?" Jinee

inquired. Gaara pointed to the huge hut on the sand dune. They nodded and hiked on.

They soon came to the hut. It was the biggest thing they've ever seen. It was _huge_. They

walked to the gate. It somehow opened for them. Five pictures lined the walls. They were

the former kazekages. There was an empty picture frame though which made six frames.

They walked on looking at pictures of the kazekages. They had already known them by

heart but now they knew their images by heart as well. They came to the corner where

Asuke stopped Gaara and Naruto from fighting. It had drapes all over the walls which

seemed that if you merely touched them they would break. A sand wolf was pacing in the

center of the room. Its nose twitched suddenly and it ceased. Because it was on its two

back feet, it dropped down to all fours and went to the wall where they had first heard

Gaara's voice. Bakra was surprised at what was on the floor. "Jinee, look at that" she

whispered pointing to the center of the floor. It was blood in the shape of his tattoo wiped

on the floorboards only feet away from them. At first she was scared and then

remembered that the wolf had dried blood on the bottom of his forearm. She straightened

up and walked out slowly. Jinee slowly followed. The wolf now sat in Gaara's old seat

and had its head in its paws. Bakra stood before it as it came to notice them. "Jinee and

Bakra, why are you here?" it asked with his head still in his paw. Jinee jumped with

fright but answered calmly. "To talk to you" he said. The wolf lifted his head to reveal

fierce eyes. Sand swirled around it and in the wolf's place sat Asuke, with the same

position and posture as the wolf. Jinee gave a sigh of relief. "About what?" he asked. He

still had the fierce eyes. Bakra spoke up this time. "You sent us both pictures of when we

were first a team, why?" Bakra responded. "to remind you that at one point no one cared

about one another in this room, now look at us" his arm bled now that he was moving it.

"It's as if we're family" Asuke continued. He softened up suddenly. "Can we ask why

you did that then?" Jinee laughed gesturing to the ground. Asuke began to stand as he

told them so that they could hear him better. "It means 'love of death'. It was put on my

forehead as a seal when I was born and the demon was sealed inside me" he lied. He

stared at the floor for a few minutes before turning away. "Only those containing demons

have them. Gaara and I have it on the same spot but Naruto, as Gaara told me, has it on

his thigh, that's what Gaara told me" Asuke continued. He remembered the day Gaara

came to his home to tell him to create the kanji. Once again he touched his forehead on

the spot tenderly. Jinee was grossed out by the blood and turned once again to his friend.

"Well….why did you cut yourself, endure the pain, and wipe it on the floor?!" He whined.

"To remind myself" he growled in reply. He turned around to see their faces asking 'of

what?' "Never mind, do you guys want to stay a few days or something?" Asuke

recommended. Jinee and Bakra looked at each other and decided to stay awhile.

"KOOVAY, REND, get here now!" Asuke called. Two sand servants appeared and took

the visitors to their rooms. As soon as they were out of earshot and sight Asuke lost it.

"AAARRRGGGHHH! I almost had her, maybe I should talk to her after dinner. Yes, I'll

do that" Asuke flustered. He buried his face I his hands and could feel memories welling

up inside him. He remembered one day he went to town. He went to a spot where he

knew kids would be playing. There were at least fifteen boys his age. They stared at him

with disgust. They threw the ball at him and their parents came and took them away from

him. Asuke jerked the ball down and stiffened his arms while he clenched his fists and

cried. He kept his head down when he walked through town. He thought of ways people

would like him. He sat at his small table with his stuffed animal wolf. He usually never

stopped trying. "It's no use" he said throwing his wolf at the wall. Asuke stared at the

limp animal before him. "That's it, I have the wolf nearly destroy the village then stop it"

he whispered to himself. So that night when all was quiet, Asuke creped into the sleepy

village and looked around. His kanji burned with excitement. The wolf became a living

sand beast something that nearly scared him if he had forgot that he created it. He ran to a

hidden corner. The wolf came to life suddenly and smashed its foot into the ground.

Villagers' candles were quickly lit to see what was happening. Screams came early.

Asuke disappeared and stood before it. It turned with such force that it surprised Asuke.

He stood his ground solidly though. The beast took several hits before striking Asuke. A

fine stream of blood came from his forehead. Gasps came from the onlookers. He reset

himself and sand quickly covered the wolf so that only the face showed. Asuke held out

his hand which quickly became a fist. The wolf burst too sand and the stuffed animal

returned to the small hut from which it came. Cheers came from only three houses with

children. He looked at them with shock, for; nobody had ever wanted him, no less

cheered for him. Finally he broke into a smile. This was a memory that he rather regretted.

"I shouldn't have done it, at least now I know how to not let them find out" He said to

himself in his huge room. Dinner was in two minutes.

After dinner, Jinee went straight to bed. Asuke pulled Bakra aside. He became

nervous. "Listen…I…I uh" he said he couldn't get it out. "What is it?" asked with a smile.

Different ways of saying what he wanted ran rapidly through his head. So, instead of

saying something, he kissed her.

R&R. Flames are welcome. If it's bad, I want to get better. BE HONEST!!!!!! Oh, and

yes I know how much I screwed up the story line


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